Landing in Manila

It was with much trepidation that found myself on a plane from Australia to The Philippines.
My family and I were settled in Brisbane and had no plans to move anywhere else in the world. But these things never seem to go the way you think they are and another Expat assignment was upon us before we knew it.
It has not been an easy ride here to say the least and the last six months have been a roller coaster of emotions as we all battle to find a new niche in this strange and smoggy land.. we are surviving though and not only are we surviving but we are finding ourselves and growing to like this place with every passing day..
Its not an easy place to live, the streets are dangerous places to be if you are a foreign Expat.. and especially a woman but the streets are also the most interesting thing for me, they are noisy and crowded, people walk, sit, eat and sleep on them every day. They are a colourful reminder that I am not living in a 1st world country anymore but one that is second world with an intense desire to be better. There is construction every where you look, one day in about ten years time this place will be an amazing metropolis of high rise shiny buildings to replace the dark and shabby ones that are slowly being replaced. The street vendors selling watermelons, coconuts, curries that I will never get to taste ( They are for the strong stomached Filipinos only) and halo halo- a filipino street food. These things I  hope get to stay as they seem part of life here, the jeepney's with there colourful murals on the side jam packed with people sometimes hanging of the back will also stay I hope as they are as much about Manila as the new and shiny buildings being built around us.
 As I travel around Manila in the safety and confines of our car I see people sitting outside there home's talking and chatting to other people, babies being bathed in buckets, bare footed children begging and dodging between the cars, men and women selling there wares on the road, anything from a feather duster to one cigarette for the needy taxi driver. Its a mad and wonderful place all at the same time!
We have only another year left in Manila so I have decided that I will try to document the time that I have here, hence the blog.. I plan on cooking some of the local food and have become more interested in Asian food there are always interesting things to be found in the supermarket!  I hope to escape the blue bubble that is the car and photograph some of these sights that I see every day and I also hope to travel to other parts of the Philippines to see the beautiful beaches and islands that people tell me are out there.. so with this introduction and a will to really try to make the most of Manila for the next year I shall sign off..